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(China is) sending a signal to the world and particularly to the US that it is committed to advancing global trade

Shane Oliver, AMP Capital Investors

The trade tariffs for 187 product categories including stilton cheese, baby nappies, coffee machines and ski equipment will drop from a high 17.3 per cent to modest 7.7 per cent.

The change will be effective from December 1, the Chinese ministry of finance said in a statement on its website today.

The ministry said: “People’s consumption demand is on the rise.

“This round of tariff cuts focused on quality and specialty products that are in high demand and connected closely with people’s daily life while they often can’t be supplied domestically.

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President Xi Jinping and the Queen

"It’ll enrich options for consumers and boost an upgrade of supply.”

China has faced criticism for not doing enough to bolster imports, a move which would help balance the trade surpluses running with a raft of other countries.

President Xi Jinping has also led the calls for his party to meet citizens’ demands for improved living standards and better quality products in the world’s largest consumer market, when speaking at the Communist Party Conclave in October.

Shane Oliver, head of investment strategy at AMP Capital Investors told Bloomberg, "It’s aimed at three things: helping boost consumption in China, reforming the Chinese economy by continuing to open it up, and sending a signal to the world and particularly to the US that it is committed to advancing global trade”.